Chapter 240: Chapter 240
Cheon-hwi looked at the clear sky.
It was already the twentieth day since he arrived at Mount Hua.
The sweltering summer had passed, and the incoming autumn slowly settled upon Mount Hua.
As he was appreciating the sunlight that now felt warm rather than hot.
Whoosh…
A pleasant, cool breeze blowing from somewhere lightly brushed past his cheeks.
“Hmm, the weather is quite nice.”
Feeling refreshed, Cheon-hwi, who had been humming, lowered his head and opened his mouth.
“Right?”
However, there was no answer to his question.
That was to be expected, because on the ground, the disciples were busy lying flat like frogs, groaning.
“Ugh…….”
“S-Stop…….”
Even seeing them like that, Cheon-hwi continued to hum a tune and raised his sword.
“The break is over now, so you should get up, right?”
As soon as those words ended, the disciples lying flat on the ground wriggled like earthworms and struggled to get up.
It was an instinctive action.
“Ugh…….”
“Now, then…….”
Just as Cheon-hwi was about to open his mouth towards the disciples who had gotten up with short groans.
“P-Guild Leader! Martial Uncle!”
A loud shout was heard from afar.
Looking at where the sound came from, Jeok Wun was running over in a flurry, almost as if running on all fours.
What is it?
Sensing that something had happened from his urgent appearance, Cheon-hwi opened his mouth.
“Why are you calling?”
“T-The Sect Leader is calling for Martial Uncle and the Martial Training Guild Leader right now!”
Cheon-hwi tilted his head.
That alone was not a reason to be so urgent.
But with Jeok Wun’s subsequent words, Cheon-hwi could understand why he had run over so urgently.
“R-Right now, the Green Forest has entered Shaanxi!”
“The Green Forest?!”
“Why Shaanxi…… Don’t tell me…….”
The disciples’ faces faintly stiffened.
Because no one had imagined that the Green Forest would come seeking them out so openly.
Around the time their eyebrows furrowed.
‘Oh, they are coming personally?’
Cheon-hwi twisted one corner of his mouth.
The Green Forest and the Daeeun Merchant Guild were bastards who would become major obstacles for the Mount Hua Sect in the future.
So he had planned to deal with them later.
‘To think they would come to die on their own.’
Just then, Hyeon-yang, who had been in the middle of taking a breathing exercise, jumped up and asked Jeok Wun.
“Where should we go?”
“Everyone is gathered at the Unjung Pavilion right now.”
Jeok Wun answered quickly, as if he had been waiting.
“Understood.”
Hyeon-yang nodded and moved immediately.
Cheon-hwi looked at Hyeon-yang running far away before saying to the disciples.
“Everyone, do your breathing exercises and make full preparations. We might have to fight the Green Forest.”
With those words, Cheon-hwi unfolded his footwork to follow Hyeon-yang, who was running ahead.
Soon, upon arriving at the Unjung Pavilion, boisterous sounds could already be heard.
“……It is presumed that their target is the Mount Hua Sect.”
A familiar voice was heard.
‘Junior Beggar? Did the Beggars’ Sect inform them?’
Cheon-hwi put strength into his steps.
Step… Step…
At the sound of the footsteps ringing out for a moment, the noisy Unjung Pavilion became quiet, and everyone’s gaze gathered.
The elders of the Mount Hua Sect discovered Cheon-hwi and Hyeon-yang and stared at them blankly.
“Are you here?”
At the Sect Leader’s voice, which was slightly lower than usual, Hyeon-yang and Cheon-hwi nodded once and strode over.
In the past, they would have made a fuss about Cheon-hwi interfering in such matters.
But it was different now.
Wasn’t Cheon-hwi currently in charge of the Mount Hua Sect’s Martial Squad?
Moreover, everyone was now at least faintly aware of Cheon-hwi’s skills, so they quietly watched his figure.
Hyeon-yang sat down first, and Cheon-hwi, who followed and sat in an empty seat, spoke.
“So, what exactly is the matter?”
“We were just about to hear the details properly.”
The Sect Leader looked at Junior Beggar next to him.
“Speak.”
“Understood.”
Junior Beggar swallowed his saliva and opened his mouth.
“This morning, it was confirmed that the Green Forest Great Emperor led his subordinates and set foot in Shaanxi.”
“Green Forest Great Emperor…… I see.”
Groans flowed out from all directions.
In the past, the Green Forest was just a gathering of bandits and did not stand out much.
But its standing was different now.
It had grown into a faction on par with the Five Imperial Sects or the Nine Great Sects and One Gang.
And at the center of that transformation was the Green Forest Great Emperor.
While most of the elders gathered here were shaken by the mention of the Green Forest Great Emperor, the Sect Leader calmly opened his mouth.
“Did you also grasp the number of subordinates?”
He continued his words with sunken eyes.
“I heard that the Green Forest Great Emperor stays at the Hengshan Stronghold. But seeing that you only realized it after he entered Shaanxi, it seems he moved with a very small number of masters. Am I wrong?”
Junior Beggar looked at Hyeon-sang with surprised eyes.
‘Did he figure all that out in such a short time?’
Usually, people would be pre-pressured by the existence of the Green Forest Great Emperor and have their judgment clouded like those elders.
But the Sect Leader, Hyeon-sang, was clear-headed.
Junior Beggar nodded his head.
“The Sect Leader’s words are correct. The Green Forest Great Emperor moved secretly, bringing only a small number of masters.”
“How many are there?”
“We haven’t grasped the exact number yet, but…… still, we estimate that it will be at least over a hundred people.”
“At least over a hundred people……?”
The Sect Leader’s glabella narrowed.
It was a larger number than expected.
But just then, Junior Beggar revealed a serious expression and added.
“And…… among them, the Four Kings of the Green Forest are all included.”
“……!”
“All of the Four Kings of the Green Forest?!”
Everyone burst into bewilderment.
The Four Kings of the Green Forest were known to be individuals with enough skill that any of them could have become the General Stronghold Leader if the Green Forest Great Emperor had not existed.
The Sect Leader’s forehead wrinkled.
Because bringing all the Four Kings of the Green Forest meant they were staking everything on this move.
Just then, Cheon-hwi opened his mouth.
“So where are they?”
His eyes had turned cold.
“If you only just realized they entered Shaanxi, they must have come quite far already.”
Junior Beggar bit his lip tightly.
“Perhaps…… they will arrive in Huayin County by today.”
“Today……?”
As everyone erupted in bewilderment.
Thud!
Hyeon Heo struck the table and shouted.
“The Beggars’ Sect didn’t know that until now?!”
At Hyeon Heo’s reprimanding words, Junior Beggar shrank his neck and sweated profusely.
Seeing the vigorously squirming muscles that looked like they would burst the Taoist robe, he immediately lowered his head.
“I-I apologize!”
“Even so…….”
Just as Hyeon Heo was about to burst into anger.
“Sit down.”
The Sect Leader let out a low voice.
“But Sect Leader, if you say the Green Forest came so suddenly, what should we…….”
“Did I not tell you to sit down?”
Hyeon Heo trembled his fists at the Sect Leader’s ice-cold words, and then sat down just like that.
But his face, still full of dissatisfaction, was turned bright red like a well-ripened apple.
When the commotion calmed down a little, the Sect Leader looked at Junior Beggar and quietly asked.
“Then is there any support from the Alliance?”
“W-Well, I did send a request for support, but since the situation is so sudden, I don’t know if they will arrive in time…….”
Junior Beggar, who slurred his final words, wore an apologetic expression.
“Is that so.”
The Sect Leader closed his eyes.
To deal with the Green Forest, it was not something a half-baked sect could support with.
It had to be at least the Nine Great Sects and One Gang.
But even for the closest Zhongnan Sect to come, it would take at least three or four days.
Perhaps even if support came upon request, it would already be after everything was finished by then.
A bitter smile was formed.
He understood that it was something even the Martial Alliance could not help, but feeling uncomfortable could not be helped.
As if the other elders shared the same sentiment, their expressions were all not good when…
“In other words, there is no support?”
Unlike them who couldn’t bring themselves to say it, Cheon-hwi asked directly, as if confirming.
Junior Beggar struggled to open his mouth.
“That is…… correct.”
“What’s this? They said they would unconditionally help if we were in danger, but in the end, there’s nothing like that.”
“That’s because the situation is urgent…….”
“So?”
Cheon-hwi’s tone turned cold.
“In the end, the important thing is that they couldn’t keep their promise, right? Only grasping the Green Forest’s movements now is the start of the problem.”
Cheon-hwi looked at Junior Beggar with indifferent eyes and opened his mouth.
“If things continue like this, I wonder if the Mount Hua Sect has any need to be in the Martial Alliance…… What do you think?”
Blood drained from Junior Beggar’s face.
Wasn’t it a tone as if they would withdraw from the Martial Alliance right away?
Just then, the Sect Leader rescued him.
“Stop it. That is not the important matter right now, is it not?”
As Cheon-hwi’s sharp gaze shifted to the Sect Leader, and Junior Beggar was about to sweep his chest down.
“That is a matter to be argued over later.”
The Sect Leader’s cold words lodged into Junior Beggar’s chest like thorns.
Junior Beggar’s face violently distorted.
‘I didn’t even come representing the Martial Alliance.’
In fact, he had come to deliver information obtained by the Beggars’ Sect; he hadn’t come for Martial Alliance business.
Yet being rebuked like this because of the Martial Alliance, he felt tears pricking his eyes.
And regardless of Junior Beggar’s inner thoughts, the reality was that Mount Hua was in a critical state.
The Sect Leader stood up from his seat.
Following that, he spoke firmly with a resolute gaze.
“Gather the disciples in one place.”
* * *
The Green Forest Great Emperor looked at Mount Hua, soaring as if not knowing the height of the sky, and opened his mouth.
“It is quite high.”
“And it is steep, ho ho.”
Next to him, a shabby-looking old man burst into laughter like a madman and opened his mouth.
“Now we just need to run wild, right, General Stronghold Leader?”
“Giryeonno!”
At that time, the White Clothed Ghost Face, Jang Ho-wun, who was assisting the Green Forest Great Emperor, shouted towards Giryeonno.
“Aigoo, this old man’s eardrums will fall out.”
Despite Jang Ho-wun’s rebuke, Giryeonno picked his ear as if annoyed.
“Your voice is damn loud.”
Seeing Giryeonno’s attitude remaining unchanged as if completely unaffected by the shouting, Jang Ho-wun’s expression violently contorted.
However, quickly gathering his mind, he spoke calmly.
“How can someone who is a subordinate call the General Stronghold Leader so lightly?”
Giryeonno chuckled.
“Hehehe, between the General Stronghold Leader and me, such things do not matter. Isn’t that right?”
The Green Forest Great Emperor burst into laughter in return.
“Haha, that’s right.”
“Look here. It’s fine……!”
The laughing Giryeonno glared with both eyes wide open.
Because a strong presence emanated from the Green Forest Great Emperor’s two eyes silently looking down at him.
“Since you will know what happens if you cross the line anyway.”
“……Would I be crazy enough to cross the line?”
Giryeonno stepped back and spoke.
“My life is precious, you see.”
“I’m glad you know.”
The Green Forest Great Emperor, who had been whispering, scanned the surroundings and spoke.
“Have the Heartless Blade and the Thorn Gate Slaying Ghost not arrived yet?”
“We received a letter from the Thorn Gate Slaying Ghost saying he would arrive soon. And the Heartless Blade…….”
Jang Ho-wun’s eyes sank deeply.
“Has occupied the rear.”
“Hahaha. Good, good.”
A smile was cast upon the Green Forest Great Emperor’s lips.
“Then the preparations in other places must also be finished.”
“That is correct.”
Jang Ho-wun answered with a cold smile.
“Finally, this day has come.”
The Green Forest Great Emperor spread both hands wide open.
Expanding his hands to the fullest as if he would grasp the whole world, his eyes settled down.
“It has been hundreds of years since we were persecuted for being merely bandits…… It is now time to end the days of not being properly treated despite being a member of Jianghu.”
At those words, the eyes of the more than one hundred Green Forest members standing behind him became intense.
The Green Forest Great Emperor lifted his head upwards.
His gaze stared at Mount Hua.
Extremely high peaks.
There would be many Taoists inside.
And today, those Taoists would turn into red blood and dye Mount Hua.
“Hahahahat!”
The Green Forest Great Emperor burst into loud laughter facing the sky.
Those watching looked at the Green Forest Great Emperor with respectful eyes.
After laughing for a long time like that, the Green Forest Great Emperor abruptly stopped laughing and slowly opened his mouth.
“It is time to show the Green Forest’s power to the world. Leave not a single blade of grass on Mount Hua, and sweep them all away.”